


Colours

by AngelicaSatan



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Everyone Needs A Hug, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, M/M, Poly if you squint, Probably ooc, Steve and Thor and Natasha are kinda dicks, could be read as a close friendship, if you blink you'll miss it, sorry - Freeform, stupid artsy angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-20
Updated: 2017-03-20
Packaged: 2018-10-08 06:40:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 3,091
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10380723
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AngelicaSatan/pseuds/AngelicaSatan
Summary: Sometimes colours tell you far more about a person than the words they say. Sometimes they can make up the whole conversation.





	1. Red

His eyes flashed red.  
For a brief second Tony could see what he'd done.  
It wasn't what people normally associate with red. This did not mean anger. When he was furious, his eyes flashed green the way Bruce's did. And, just like with Bruce, that flash of green was terrifying and could send the strongest man to his knees. No. Red was when he slipped. His mask fell out of place and, for a brief moment, one could see how broken he was. How much damage had been done. This was a far more frightening colour than the furious green could ever be; the broken red.  
Tony knew this was going to be trouble. He knew that red far too well, and knew what was to follow. At least this time it wasn't his fault.  
Thor had come in to the lab looking for Tony. The engineer had locked himself in three days ago and the team was becoming concerned. He had been chosen to come down and fetch the man after Bruce was unable to talk him down. Basically the plan was he would carry Tony out kicking and screaming as, other than Bruce, he was the only one Tony would truly lash out at, would definitely forgive.  
He hadn't known that another had been concerned with the billionaires condition and found his way into the locked room with ease. He hadn't known that the billionaire was already in the process of being talked down from a rather self destructive spiral. He certainly hadn't expected to walk in on Tony hugging someone tightly, the pair crying into each-other's shoulders, when he forced the lab door open.  
When the door had opened Tony had flinched. The other man had spun around and began backing away as Thor raised mjolnir and began to shout, and Tony saw his eyes flash red before stepping between Thor and his target only to be knocked aside with enough force to send him flying across the room.  
At this the other man screamed, running to Tony's side, the red returning to his eyes and remaining there as he clung to the genius in his arms, struggling to breath. When Thor attempted to separate the man from his friend he found himself on the other side of the room, ice holding him to the wall less likely to break than the wall itself.  
The man held his love to his chest as he assessed the engineers injuries. No more were present than when he first arrived and he sighed in relief, the blue fading from the skin around his neck and hands. Tony's eyes opened just in time to see the red fade returning his eyes to the beautiful green he so loved to stare into. He raised a hand to the man's face checking for any form of injury before glancing over his shoulder to see Thor literally frozen in place.  
"Was that necessary luv?" he asked, gesturing to the ice cube containing his friend and team mate.  
"He threw you into a wall and did not stop, had he continued to attack me you could have been hurt. I don't care what he wants to do to me, but, you are off limits. Anyone who dares to so much as think about harming you deserves anything that comes of it."  
"I think both the other guy and I can agree with him there Tony," Bruce said, stepping though the door and nodding at both men before checking Tony for injury, one hand on the other man's shoulder. "Sorry man, I tried to keep them out but Cap and Thor are hard enough to control let alone when it comes to your tendency to go days without food or sleep."  
"It's all good Bruce, you couldn't have known he would be here when Thor got here."  
"I knew he would come, I called him, I tried to convince the team that I had a plan to get you to come out, that I could get in here and talk you down but... You know how stubborn muscle bound blonds can be," the doctor responded smiling.  
Neither man could help but chuckle at Bruce's statement. Once the chuckling had died down they shared a soft kiss before the man rose, taking both Tony and Bruce with him, and turned to the frozen, but still fully aware, God and drew the ice away leaving an angry Thor in its place.  
Before the nord could say a word the men before him turned, arms around each other, and left the dumbstruck God alone with his thoughts.  
"How could you?"


	2. Green

Furious Green from both was enough to scare even Tony, and neither set of eyes were even directed at him.  
Each man was powerful enough when calm. When angry they were a force to be reckoned with. But when both were enraged to the point of their eye's glowing green it was best to beg forgiveness and resign one's self to whatever fate was to come.  
Of course Steve did not understand this, or the cause of either man's anger.  
The men had succeeded in getting Tony into his bed. They had removed his shirt and began to tend to the burns on his arms and chest as well as the bruises on his back when Steve came bursting into the room, Clint following quickly behind.  
"What the hell is this?" Steve shouted gesturing to the scene before him.  
"I'm sorry Bruce I couldn't keep him out any longer and when he got to the lab and saw Thor there alone, I couldn't talk him down. There was still ice on the wall and floor," Clint hurried to Bruce's side babbling rapidly. "He kinda freaked, punched a wall, and then ran out before I could do anything."  
"Before you could do anything!" Steve all but screamed at the archer. "I can't believe that you and Bruce are condoning this! I knew Tony was pretty fucked up and had a voracious sexual appetite but this is ridiculous!" he turned to Tony "Even you can't be this stupid! He's a monster and you hold him and shift in front of him as if he were a beautiful woman to be protected! You disgust me! When I thought you could sink no lower, you find yet another way to surprise me! How could you do this?!"  
When his rant finished Tony had shrunk back, Clint quickly moving beside him out of either man's way, as both men who had been tending to him turned to glare at Steve, eyes flashing green.  
"You will not speak to him that way," One said in a quiet voice sharper than the dagger now present in his hand.  
"I'd be very careful what you say next Cap," Clint said, now seated beside Tony and continuing where Bruce had left off wrapping the man's arm.  
"You're defending this Bruce?" Steve answered standing his ground. "You're defending this disgusting mockery of everything this team was built to do.  
"I recommend you leave Rogers, before I do something you'll regret," Bruce replied, every word clipped short, skin slowly gaining a green tint as he grew slightly with each step to move himself between the other three men and the super soldier.  
"How could you condone this? Why would you accept, defend even, this?" Steve asked, slowly backing away.  
"Because we love him," came the responses of all three men between the captain and Tony. And, with that, Steve fled.


	3. Blue

He was turning blue.  
Tony and Clint could both see that all exposed skin was blue and the conjured armor faded out of existence.   
Tony's heart clenched and he immediately rose, unhindered, and went to his side. He wrapped his arms around the man holding him close, pulling his head down to his shoulder, and began to whisper in his ear.  
"You are not a monster. You are not disgusting. You are beautiful. You deserve to be happy. You deserve so much better than me. You are not a monster. You are the most amazing man I've ever met. You are far kinder than he could ever be. You are not a monster. I love you."  
"You are not a monster. You are none of the things he said, either of you. You know muscular blonds, they tend to be stubborn and brainless. You are not a monster. He is an ass. You are beautiful. You are not a monster." Bruce joined in the whispered words, turning to wrap his arms around the lovers, rubbing soothing circles on both backs.  
"You are not a monster. You are all wonderful. He doesn't understand. He thinks he knows you and he doesn't. He is more of a monster than you are. You know that. You are not a monster." Clint added, closing the circle and laying his head against the, now fading, blue shoulder in a show of complete trust.  
As the last of the blue faded from his skin, and the red from his eyes, he shakily raised Tony's chin and kissed away his frown. "You are not disgusting. You are not voracious. You are beautiful. You are not a monster." He whispered against the other mans lips before looking over at, the now normal sized, Dr. Banner. "You are not a monster. You are the kindest man I know. Thank-you." When the doctor nodded he turned his gaze to Clint. "You did nothing wrong. You were amazing. Thank-you." Clint smiled and nodded.  
"Thank-you." Was all Tony said, smiling at all three men around him with tears in his eyes.  
"Like we said, we love you."


	4. White

He is so white scars disappear.  
Loki can't help but panic when he sees him this white. So overworked, sleep deprived, malnourished, and dehydrated that his skin has lost all pigment. The only thing differentiating him from the ashen wall are the red and brown burn marks marring his arms and chest.  
Loki runs toward him, pulling him out of his work and away from all manner of tool he could burn himself on. He holds the man close, hoping to draw the man out of his work and back into the land of the living. He holds him as if he could easily break the man, but also with a desperation and fear that will not let him escape. Much the way one would hold a baby bird.  
When Banner had called, Loki had come at once. He'd been so afraid. The doctor had made it clear that neither Steve nor Thor had any intention of waiting this out but he'd do the best he could to delay them. The trickster had thanked him and hung up travelling immediately to his beloved's aid.  
When he had arrived he knew Banner was not exaggerating. He had been locked in the lab for at least three days, and had not been taking any care. There were burns from all manner of equipment up and down his arms. His chest and back also marred leaving holes in the t-shirt the man was wearing. Loki was worried, it had been a while since he had gotten this bad, and immediately began calming the man. Holding him tightly and allowing him to cry into his embrace as tears began to slip from his own eyes.  
That was when his brother had broken down the door.  
Everything went wrong. Loki panicked, briefly losing his grasp on his magic, as he flinched and lost any colour that had returned.  
The trickster back away from him, attempting to prevent any harm from coming to him, as Thor began to shout and charge. And he stepped in front of the enraged god.  
Loki saw him flying through the air, landing a few feet away, and screamed. He ran to his love, checking for injuries and pulling him into his lap. By now he had released all attempts at controlling his magic, so, when his brother attempted to wrestle the man from his arms, Thor wound up across the room encased in a block of ice.  
"Was that necessary luv?" he asked, looking up at the man literally frozen in place across the room.  
"He threw you into a wall and did not stop, had he continued to attack me you could have been hurt. I don't care what he wants to do to me, but, you are off limits. Anyone who dares to so much as think about harming you deserves anything that comes of it." Loki answered, very protectively.  
Bruce stepped through the door then, walking over to join the two men on the ground and placing a hand on Loki's shoulder. "I think both the other guy and I can agree with him there Tony. Sorry man, I tried to keep them out but Cap and Thor are hard enough to control let alone when it comes to your tendency to go days without food or sleep."  
"It's all good Bruce, you couldn't have known he would be here when Thor got here."  
"I knew he would come, I called him, I tried to convince the team that I had a plan to get you to come out, that I could get in here and talk you down but... You know how stubborn muscle bound blonds can be," the doctor responded smiling.  
Neither man could help but chuckle at Bruce's statement. Once the chuckling had died down they shared a soft kiss before Loki rose, taking both men with him, and turned to the frozen, but still fully aware, God and drew the ice away leaving an angry Thor in its place.  
Before the nord could say a word the men before him turned, arms around each other, and left the dumbstruck God alone with his thoughts.  
"How could you?"


	5. Grey

The grey was all that gave away the mask.  
One who didn't know that look; the blank, slate grey face he wore when was hurt. He hid his pain well. He learned how when he was very young, too young. However, Loki and Bruce both saw through the mask, eyes glowing green as they turned toward the man responsible.  
They had finally succeeded in getting him up to his room and begun to wrap his wounds when Roger's had slammed the door open. Clint had run in behind him and straight to Bruce's side, apologies flying from his lips. Loki turned to watch the Captain, trying to position his body between the angry soldier and his love, while the other man attempted to do the same.  
That was when Steve began to shout. "I can't believe that you and Bruce are condoning this! I knew Tony was pretty fucked up and had a voracious sexual appetite but this is ridiculous!" he turned from the archer to the man in question. "Even you can't be this stupid! He's a monster and you hold him and shift in front of him as if he were a beautiful woman to be protected! You disgust me! When I thought you could sink no lower, you find yet another way to surprise me! How could you do this?!"  
He went grey and both Bruce and Loki saw green. They turned toward the soldier, rising from their places by the bed and shifting to the foot.  
Loki's armor was fully formed by the time he reached the end of the bed. A blade in his hand and eyes sharp he spoke quietly. "You will not speak to him that way."  
"I'd be very careful what you say next Cap," Clint said, continuing where Bruce had left off wrapping the man's arm.  
"You're defending this Bruce?" Steve answered standing his ground. "You're defending this disgusting mockery of everything this team was built to do.  
"I recommend you leave Rogers, before I do something you'll regret," Bruce replied, every word clipped short, skin slowly gaining a green tint as he grew slightly with each step to move himself between the other three men and the super soldier.  
"How could you condone this? Why would you accept, defend even, this?" Steve asked, slowly backing away.  
"Because we love him," came the response from archer, doctor, and god alike.  
With that, Steve fled.


	6. Brown

The brown of his eyes was blurred by tears.  
As he stepped forward all masks fell leaving vulnerable, clear brown. He no longer cared about hiding his pain and the steel cleared from his eyes, only the soft brown remaining.  
As soon as Steve was gone he rose, moving quickly across the room to Loki's side. He ran his hand across the god's cheek, attempting to smooth the tension he saw there. He turned the tricksters face and pulled his head down onto his shoulder.  
He held Loki close, whispering, "You are not a monster. You are not disgusting. You are beautiful. You deserve to be happy. You deserve so much better than me. You are not a monster. You are the most amazing man I've ever met. You are far kinder than he could ever be. You are not a monster. I love you."  
"You are not a monster. You are none of the things he said, either of you. You know muscular blonds, they tend to be stubborn and brainless. You are not a monster. He is an ass. You are beautiful. You are not a monster." Bruce joined in the whispered words, turning to wrap his arms around the lovers, rubbing soothing circles on both backs.  
"You are not a monster. You are all wonderful. He doesn't understand. He thinks he knows you and he doesn't. He is more of a monster than you are. You know that. You are not a monster." Clint added, closing the circle and laying his head against Loki's shoulder in a show of complete trust.  
Shakily Loki raised his chin and kissed away his frown. He stared deeply into those still clear brown eyes as they slipped closed and he returned the kiss. "You are not disgusting. You are not voracious. You are beautiful. You are not a monster." Loki turned to the now normal sized man beside him as the last of the green faded from his eyes. "You are not a monster. You are the kindest man I know. Thank-you." When the doctor nodded, Loki turned his gaze to Clint. "You did nothing wrong. You were amazing. Thank-you." Clint smiled and nodded.  
"Thank-you." Was all he could answer, smiling at all three men around him with tears in his soft brown eyes.  
"Like we said, we love you."


End file.
